This application claims priority to an application entitled xe2x80x9cBattery Pack Locking Apparatus for a Mobile Telephonexe2x80x9d filed in the Korean Industrial Property Office on Jan. 11, 2000 and assigned Serial No. 2000-1163, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a battery pack locking apparatus for a mobile telephone, and in particular, to a battery pack locking apparatus in which a locker is operable with its own mechanical structure without using separate elastic means.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a mobile terminal such as a mobile telephone has a battery pack detachably mounted on the rear side of its body as a power source. The battery pack is locked by a locking apparatus mounted on the body of the mobile telephone, and at least one guide rib is formed on the body to guide the battery pack.
In addition, the battery pack has electrodes formed on the inner and outer surfaces of its lower portion. The electrodes formed on the inner surface of the battery pack are so structured as to contact the connection terminals formed on the rear surface of the body of the mobile telephone. Further, the electrodes formed on the outer surface of the battery pack are so structured as to contact the connection terminals of a charger during charge.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the rear side of a general mobile telephone, with a battery pack detached from a body of the mobile telephone. FIG. 2 is a partial plane view illustrating the battery pack locking apparatus of FIG. 1.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the mobile telephone includes a body 100 comprised of an upper casing frame 101 and a lower casing frame 102, and a battery pack 200 detachably mounted on the rear side of the body 100. The lower casing frame 102 has a plane surface 103 formed on its rear side, and the plane surface 103 has connection terminals protuberantly formed at one end and a locking apparatus 105 mounted on another end, for fixedly attaching the battery pack 200 to the lower casing frame 102. In addition, the plane surface 103 has guide ribs 104 formed on its both sides to guide the battery pack 200 to the locking apparatus 105, and the battery pack 200 also has guide ribs 204 formed on its both sides to be combined with their associated guide ribs 104 on the plane surface 103. In such a mobile telephone, the battery pack 200 is attached to and detached from the lower casing frame 102 in the direction xe2x80x9cBxe2x80x9d, and a locker 105 for locking the battery pack 200 operates in the direction xe2x80x9cAxe2x80x9d.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a conventional battery pack locking apparatus for the mobile telephone.
Referring to FIG. 3, a locker 105 includes a hook (106 of FIG. 1) formed to be hooked at a hooking groove (not shown) formed on the front side of the battery pack 200, at least one guide rib 107 mounted on the lower casing frame 102 to guide the locker 105 perpendicularly, and a spring pin 108 for supporting a spring 109, the spring pin 108 extending downward from the center of the locker 105. The guide rib 107 has a hook 107a formed at one end to be hooked at a hooking member 102a formed on the lower casing frame 102, to thereby prevent the locker 105 from being detached from the lower casing frame 102 during its up-and-down movement. The spring pin 108 is mounted on the lower surface of the locker 105 such that it should freely pass through a guide hole 102b formed in the lower casing frame 102, to thereby prevent interference with the up-and-down movement of the locker 105.
However, the conventional battery pack locking apparatus uses the separate spring for the elastic means. Use of the spring unavoidably increases the number of assembling processes, making the assembling process complicated.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a battery pack locking apparatus for a mobile telephone, which has a structure with a reduced number of assembling processes.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a battery pack locking apparatus for a mobile telephone, in which a locker is operable with its own mechanical structure without using a separate element.
To achieve the above and other objects, there is provided a battery pack locking apparatus for a mobile telephone. The battery pack locking apparatus includes a locker up-and down movably mounted on a lower casing frame of the mobile telephone, and an elastic member formed on a lower surface of the locker to provide a restitution force to the locker.
Preferably, the elastic member is a zigzag tension rib, which is formed extending downward from the lower surface of the locker such that a free end of the tension rib should be pressingly in contact with to the lower casing frame.
Preferably, the lower casing frame has a plane surface with which the free end of the tension rib pressingly contacts.